


6960 Magic

by ankesenpaaten



Category: Noblesse (Manhwa)
Genre: Cadiscord Secret Santa, Korean Culture, Other, The Girls - Freeform, nibbles
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-09
Updated: 2021-01-09
Packaged: 2021-03-18 17:54:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,286
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28622109
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ankesenpaaten/pseuds/ankesenpaaten
Summary: "Kicking rocks around the streets of Myeongdong, Rael had smuggled Nibbles out of the school office, and into her spaceship backpack. He let her hop along in the park, eating grass and hissing at grasshoppers.It was now 4:45. He had been sulking for a few hours, but he wouldn't admit it, and he wouldn't crawl back and see their smug faces. He did not need a babysitter, and he was not a child."....Hey, Yuna, is that…?""Nibbles?""
Relationships: Im Suyi & Rael Kertia & Seo Yuna
Comments: 11
Kudos: 14
Collections: Cadiscord Secret Santa 2021, The Modern Kertia Expansion Pack: Keeping Up with the Kertias





	6960 Magic

**Author's Note:**

  * For [FreakCityPrincess](https://archiveofourown.org/users/FreakCityPrincess/gifts).



Rael was being punished for his temper, again. He had spoken out of turn, and had been "disrespectful and crude" to his brother, and so, had been punished. His punishment was participating in gym class; it was dodgeball day, and Rael hated everything. 

He grumbled as he effortlessly caught balls and threw them as hard as he was allowed to at his "classmates’" faces. He wouldn't break any bones, just bruise them a bit. Not just anyone was able to have this level of restraint; Rael was a Kertia, and that meant prestige, power, honor. Stealth. _Speed_. Dodgeball was a joke to him; he had faced steeper challenges even as a baby learning to toddle. 

Upon arriving to school that day, he had been called down to the Principal's office, where he was informed that Sir Frankenstein had been told of his behavior, and that he did not consider it appropriate conduct for a future clan leader.

Such a chastisement from another human would have set Rael's blood afire with fury, but Sir Frankenstein was not an ordinary human. Sir Frankenstein's ability and intelligence were even above a _nobles'_.

Thus, Rael was not at all regretful for his behavior, but rather, was embarrassed and ashamed that Sir Frankenstein had deemed it unworthy. Since the time when he was beginning to talk and walk, other nobles had criticized him as well; he was too loud, too volatile, too aggressive, too energetic, too bold, and too brash. He ignored them all; after all, what did they know? They were naturally beneath him by the mere occurrence of their birth. Ants do not judge spiders. Spiders do not judge birds. They accept their natural place in the hierarchy of life; to do otherwise would be folly. 

But Sir Frankenstein had beaten and bled his way to the top of the food chain; he alone deserved respect for his accomplishments, and to have his rightful birth place restored to him. 

So, Rael was here, playing dodgeball with human children, while Seira and Regis had tea time with Sir Frankenstein and the Noblesse. 

One might say that Rael did not have honor, for he did not respect his punishments or fulfill them with pride, however, this was not true. He simply refused to follow orders given by subservient weaklings. They had no place to judge him; even less to order him about. How dare they? 

So he ignored their invalid demands and refused their illegal punishments. He answered only to the Lord, his clan leaders, and Sir Frankenstein. 

"Hey! Rael! Pass me the ball!"

"Shinwoo, this is dodgeball, not basketball," Ikhan complained. 

"Duh, I know that. He can't do it anyway, he has puny little baby arms. Nyah nyah nyeh!" Shinwoo said as he stuck his tongue out at him.

Rael growled. "I'll show you who has little baby arms, you useless piece of trash--"

The ball made a loud whack that echoed as it slammed into the stone wall. Everyone stopped as they stared at the brick, expecting it to collapse, or the ball to be in a crater. There was neither. Rael had thrown it with enough strength to hurt, but not enough to break bones. 

Shinwoo laughed. "Hahahah! Missed me! Missed me! Tiny little baby arms missed me! Nyeh nyeh nyeh nyeh!"

Ikhan punched him in the shoulder. "Knock it off! Stop antagonizing him before he beats you up!"

Seething in anger, Rael vowed revenge on the human race, starting with Han Shinwoo. But for now, he had to lie low, and pretend to be a weak little runt who was no different from them. 

"Now now, Shinwoo, that wasn't very nice," Tao chided as he came walking over. 

"Hyung!"

"You better play nice, or Rael might eat you. He does that, you know," he winked at Rael. 

"Don't you have a job to do, or something?" Rael grumbled. 

"Or something! This is part of my job!"

"I don't need a babysitter, and especially not you!"

"Babysitter? If I'm supposed to being babysitting you, Boss needs to pay me a lottttttt more!"

"Go away! I don't need your help!"

"Hey, I'm just patrolling the grounds. I'm not doing anything to you."

A shrill whistle cut off their conversation. It was from Teacher Park's whistle, and he ordered them to line up for running laps. Shinwoo groaned loudly.

"Aww man! Not laps!" 

"Better hurry up, Rael. This is your time to shine, isn't it?"

Rael responded by glaring at him, wrapping himself up in his cloak, and disappearing.

"Hey, wait! You can't do that! You're still in class!" Tao yelled at the spot where Rael once stood.

“Shit,” he muttered, pulling out his phone. 

←Trio ❤️💕  
  
um. Guys. We have a problem   
Takeo  
this better be a real problem not you wanting to tell us a new joke you just thought up   
no! Rael just disappeared again!   
m21  
what did you do now?   
  
me???  
  
how dare u think I did something!!!  
  
im hurt : (   
  
Takeo  
hes probably just having another teenage sulking moment. Dw about it   
  


m21  
whatever. Not my problem.  
:(   
okay : (  
so...   
Takeo  
what  
what do u guys want for dinner   
Takeo  
....seriously? This is what you're worried about now?  
M21  
....  
I'm hungry : (  
Takeo  
you had lunch two hours ago!  
: ((  
....omurice?   
M21  
you have the tastebuds of a child  
>: O  
how dare u  
im telling seira  
m21  
go ahead and tell mommy on me  
>: (  


←Seichan ❤️💕  
  
seiiiii chaaaan uwu   
Seira  
....  
  
Seira  
Please do not call me that again.  
seiraaaaaa   
what do u want for dinner  
Seira  
soup made from the bones of my enemies  
um. Okay. But   
can we have omurice : (  
m said it's only for kids : (  
Seira  
Okay : ) We can have omurice for dinner : )  
yaaaay thank u sei chan! Uwu   
Seira  
....  
...sorry. understood.   
Seira  
: )  


~~~~

Kicking rocks around the streets of Myeongdong, Rael had smuggled Nibbles out of the school office, and into her spaceship backpack. He let her hop along in the park, eating grass and hissing at grasshoppers. 

It was now 4:45. He had been sulking for a few hours, but he wouldn't admit it, and he wouldn't crawl back and see their smug faces. He did _not_ need a babysitter, and he was _not_ a child.

"....Hey, Yuna, is that…?"

"Nibbles?"

He spun around to see Suyi and Yuna with their bags, cooing and blowing kisses at Nibbles.

"What are you guys doing here?" 

"Oh, hi Rael!"

"We were just going to get some food after hakgwon when we saw Nibbles here, and knew you weren't too far behind."

"Hey, why don't you come with us? You don't have anything else to do, right?"

He was about to refuse, because he did _not_ want her pity invite, even though he knew what a pathetic spectacle he was giving off right now, and he was _not_ done sulking yet, but Nibbles had nuzzled Yuna's hands, and asked to be picked up, so that decided it for him.

"Fine," he sighed, "Where are we going?"

\----

“Here, Rael, try some ddeokbokki,” Suyi said as she held a stick in front of his face. 

“‘Ddeokbokki’? What is that?” Rael took the outheld stick, looking at it suspiciously.

"Rice cake soaked in spicy sauce."

"Yeah! It's really good, I think you'll like it a lot!"

Rael looked at them unconvinced, before looking back at the stick. The stick that was now dripping gochujang sauce all over the floor. "Disgusting," was all he said 

“It’s not going to eat you, you eat it,” Yuna giggled at him from behind her own stick of rice cake. 

"Rawwwrrr, Rael's gotta watch out for the evil ddeokbokki on a stick! If he doesn't pay his bill, the ahjumma will beat him!" 

“Don’t eat the stick, that’s not part of the food.”

He gave them a dirty look as he took a bit and chewed. It wasn't….that bad. In fact, he actually kind of liked it. It was sweet but spicy, not too sweet and not too hot. The ddeok was chewy, but soft. It reminded him of the "gum" that some of the other children had given him once. 

"So what do you think?” Yuna prompted him. 

“It’s not bad,” he said after swallowing, “I thought you weren’t supposed to swallow these gum things?” 

They looked at him, confused. The attention made him uncomfortable, like when he was at a clan meeting, and spoke out of turn, or said something he shouldn't have, and Brother gave him a disappointed look. 

"What?" He asked, fidgeting a bit.

"Gum? This is ddeokbokki, not gum. I don't understand what you mean?"

"You know. Gum is chewy, ddeokbokki is chewy. You don't swallow gum, but you swallow ddeokbokki?"

"Um, well," Yuna looked to Suyi, who was as confused as she was, "that's because ddeok is edible, and gum isn't?"

"Why not?"

"Um, well, …. Gum is latex, and ddeok is rice? You don't digest latex."

"Oh." 

"I mean, you _can_ swallow it, but it might clog up your intestines," Suyi added.

"What are...intestines?"

"Intestines...you know, the tube shaped thing in your stomach that digests food?"

"Oh." 

"Yeah, um, Suyi, what are they called in English?"

Suyi chewed her ddeokbokki stick for a minute, thinking. ".... _Stomachie_." 

Yuna frowned, thinking herself for a bit. "No, that's not it. Bae is stomach."

"Why do you think I know?"

"Your English is good!"

"But I don't know what intestine is! It doesn't exactly come up in daily conversation!" 

" _Intestine_ ," Rael said suddenly.

"Huh?" They both turned and looked at him curiously. 

" _Intestine_. Is sojang."

"Een test eeen?" Yuna enunciated the word carefully.

"Yeah, intestine."

"Oh. Okay," Yuna said while Suyi nodded her head. 

"Did you just remember or something?" Suyi asked him as she finished off her ddeokbokki. 

"Huh? Oh. Uh. Yeah, I just remembered."

Yuna took the ddeokbokki paper container and put it in the garbage before dusting her hands off. "What do you want next?"

"Dessert!" 

"Okay, what kind do you want?"

"Yuna, read my Katalk status."

"Huh? Why?"

"Just read it."

"I'm not going to read it, just tell me what you want."

"Two words. Deli. Manjoo." 

Yuna groaned. "Nooo, not again. This is the third time this week. I'm so sick of it! Just choose something else!"

"Why?"

"Because if you want deli manjoo, I'm not going to eat with you!"

"Wow, such loyalty. You let a pastry get between us?"

"No, I'm letting your bad taste in food get between us."

Suyi gasped. "Take that back right now."

"Make me!"

"Don't make me wrestle you. I will defend my favorite food's honor."

"Oh, what is Miss CF Commercial Queen going to do? Are you going to smile me to death?"

"You shut your mouth, pretty girl. I'll rearrange your teeth."

"Oh noooo I'm so scared 119 Miss Im Suyi threatened to rearrange my face I'm scared please send help!"

"Just for that, you're off my best friends list."

"What, are you going to kick me off the group chat?"

"Try me."

"What the fuck is a deli manjoo?" Rael interrupted. 

"It's only the best food ever created by man!" Suyi interjected. Yuna gave her a dirty look.

"No, shut up. Don't listen to her, she has bad food taste but can't shut up about it."

"Listen, pretty girl, I _will_ fight you."

"I'm going to stab you with these chopsticks and make it look like an accident." 

"What the fuck is a deli manjoo!"

"It's a pastry in the shape of corn with custard in the middle."

"It doesn't matter because we are not getting any."

"Can we just eat something, please?" Rael interrupted again. 

"Fine! We'll get some deli manjoo for the fourth time this week! But I am _not_ having any, I'm having bungeobbang."

Suyi leaned close to Rael to conspiratorially whisper in his ear. "Don't mind her, she's just a sore loser with bad taste."

"At least I have a palate that's more than junk food and corn shaped custard pastries!" 

"I do _not_ eat junk food, just because I don't eat a healthy superfood traditional Korean diet every day like you doesn't mean I'm unhealthy.”

"Whatever. Let's get your dumb corn pastry already."

~~~

"So what do you think of deli manjoo? It's great isn't it?" Suyi promoted.

"It's ...okay. I like sweet things," Rael stated, staring at the remnants of the corn shaped pastry. 

"Most normal people do. It's only the health freaks like Yuna that have a problem with it."

Yuna ignored her statement, choosing instead to finish her bungeobbang. She ripped the head off first while pointedly looking at Suyi. 

"Why don't we bring home some carrots for Nibbles when she wakes up?"

"Sure, okay. What do you think, Rael?"

"Oh. Okay, sure." 

"Ugh, that math test tomorrow is going to suckkkkk," Suyi complained as she stretched out her arms and legs. 

"The history test isn't going to be easy either. How am I supposed to remember what King Gwangjong did? That was thousands of years ago."

"He instituted the civil service exams, Yuna. Duh. That's an easy one."

"Rael, what do you think of the exams tomorrow?"

"Oh, them? They're going to be easy, no big deal," he said, flippantly. 

"Did you even study for them?" Yuna asked skeptically. 

"Study? For that? I don't need to study for things that are easy." 

"Wow, you're so modest, Rael. Can you teach us your secret?" Suyi teased him. 

He puffed out his chest. "No, sorry. You have to be born with this kind of genius." 

They both rolled their eyes at him, but were spared any more of Rael’s bragging by the notification sound going off on Suyi’s phone. 

_Katalk katalk katalk._

Suyi took out her phone and opened the app.

←Mom🥰  
  
Mom  
suyi yah it's time to come home   
  
Mom  
its 9pm and you have two tests tomorrow  
  
okay I'm coming home now   


"Time to go home, I guess. My mom wants me to sleep early for the tests tomorrow," Suyi rolled her eyes. 

"Oh! Okay, I'll walk with you home. Is that okay with you, Rael?" Yuna asked. 

"Do you need help getting home?" 

"Us? Do we need help getting home?" Suyi asked skeptically.

"...right. Sorry." 

"Bye, see you tomorrow in school! I'll bring some food for Nibbles!" 

"Stop bringing her food, she doesn't need to be fat!" He yelled after them. When they were out of sight, he checked his own phone. Two missed calls and thirteen Kakao messages.

←Brother  
  
Brother  
Father has told me you are not home yet.   
Brother  
rael. I can feel your unkind thoughts.   
Brother  
rael. Come home now.   


←Sir Karias  
  
Sir Karias  
yooooo little bro what's uppppp   
  
Sir Karias  
hey you wanna go out for ice cream and complain about your bro   
Sir Karias  
hes a real stick in the mud isnt he   


←Tao  
  
Tao  
hey  
Tao  
ur not dead right  
Tao  
boss will kill me if ur dead : (  


←M21  
  
M21  
....  


←Takeo  
  
Takeo  
your brother is worried about you  
Takeo  
hes being real annoying too  


←Sir Frankenstein  
  
Sir Frankenstein  
I will find you.  


Rael gulped as he read the last one. Perhaps he should go home too, as in, right now. It wasn't because he was scared or anything; he just had two tests tomorrow and it never hurt to prepare.

“Come on, Nibbles,” he urged her as zipped open her backpack. She gave him a look that expressed her dissatisfaction, but climbed into the bag on the promise of extra treats when they got home. He threw out the rest of the trash they had left, grabbed Nibbles’ bag, and headed home. 

~~~

Rael landed on the roof, not disturbing any tree branches or making a sound. He usually left his windows unlocked for this exact situation. 

"Alright, Nibbles. Let's go."

He pushed the window open, before lowering himself slowly, carefully, onto the incredibly tiny ledge outside, and crawling through. He landed softly and silently on the rug. 

He opened up his bag and let Nibbles jump out onto the floor. She sniffed around before hopping off to her bed. "Alright, good night, then," he said, rolling his eyes at her.

"Rael, you little brat, I know you're in there!" 

"No, I'm not. I'm dead, stop looking for me," he replied flippantly as he went to sprawl out on his bed. 

"Rael, Seira wants to talk to you~~"

He paused, considering. Seira could always talk to him telepathically, if she really wanted to, but he would never reject an in person meeting if she asked for one. That would be positively foolish, wouldn't it? 

"...Fine," he grumbled, rolling off the bed and opening the door. 

"Great!" Karias clapped his hands together, "and afterwards, I wish to speak with you as well, you made your brother very upset by not answering his messages, and I thought it was very rude of you--"

Rael ignored him and walked down to the kitchen where Seira was. 

"Hey! I'm still speaking!" Karias yelled after him.

In the kitchen, Seira was making omurice omelettes while Tao "helped". (Tao "helping" consisted of nothing more than "Tao trying to steal bits of omelette off the hot oil pot, burning his fingers, and trying to eat it anyway like a seagull while Seira smacked his hands with a spatula".)

"Seira? You wanted to see me?"

"Oh! Rael! It's good to see you're not dead, I was concerned we would lose RK6!" Tao said, happily.

Rael ignored him, instead, focusing on Seira's hands as she flipped the omelette so elegantly…

"Yes," she said as she handed the spatula to Tao, "Your behavior this afternoon was very inelegant and inconsiderate of a noble of your stature. The entire house was worried about you, and you did not answer any of their messages," she stated matter of factly, staring him down. He felt very intimidated.

"Were you….worried about me?" 

She nodded. "Yes. You have a history of making rash decisions that lead to unfortunate outcomes when you are feeling upset. I was concerned."

"Oh! I'm….sorry I made you concerned. I will try and be better at it next time," he promised, starstruck. 

"Thank you. I appreciate it. Now, it is time for dinner. Please get ready," she nodded at him as she turned back to Tao. 

Rael wandered over to the living room, starstruck by Seira's comments. He flopped on the couch rather inelegantly as Karias came marching down the hallway.

"Hey! I was talking to you, you little brat! You don't just walk away when an elder is talking to you!"

"Oh, sorry. I'll do better next time," he mumbled. 

"You have no manners, no respect, and your conduct is entirely inappropri---what?"

"I'm sorry I didn't answer any messages. I'll do better next time." 

"Oh…..okay. Great, thanks. I'm really proud of you, Rael, it is a very mature thing to admit your wrongs and apologize for them!" Karias teared up, "Is it possible….our little boy is maturing?" 

"Your brother will be so happy to hear this news, he was so concerned about you, and he's such a _drag_ when he gets into one of his "I'm a serious clan leader on serious clan leader business" moods. I will go tell him!" Karias decided, as he went back down the hallway.

+

"Hey," M21 said as he sat down, "Tao was going around telling people you might be dead."

"That's nice," Rael mumbled.

"Cool. Time for dinner soon, you eating?"

"No thank you.."

M21 nodded. "Alright," he said, and they then sat in silence. 

Seira...Seira….was _worried_ about him….Seira….. _seiraseiraseiraseiraseiraseira…_..

He hugged his knees to his chest, feeling warmth throughout his body. Not even Regis and M21 fighting over who got whose chopsticks could ruin his mood. 


End file.
